A question re US airlines and unions

i know in the USA unions are a big thing , given the oil price rocket ride upwards , and the enourmous squeeze on airlines , that and unions demanding ever bigger pay rises

what happens in the event of a `major` airline going bust in the US?

is it a case of ` sorry your not working here anymore - have a nice day, oh and don`t expect your pay this month or ever`

or is there something else?

US Unions sap the economy. Typically (but not always) union workers work jobs that require litte skill, and is typically "hand labor", or more appropiately, "chimp labor".

The reason why jobs are going overseas because it makes good business sense.

In my experience at work, the union workers are exceptionally lazy and way overpaid. They think they're entitled to work - you must accept their work and you must pay them what they want for it. Oh, and if they feel like they may run out of work, they will bring productivity to a standstill. This is counter- business. They've become coercive and are telling the company how to run itself.

There was once a place for unions in our culture, but that time has long past.

Oh yeah, to answer your question: It's all about the labor union contract. Some contracts state that union works must go to work even if their work is not profitable. Or stiff payouts to "buy" the contract out and lay them off. Think Chrysler.

A collective bargaining agreement is only good if the company is solvent IMHO. If the company goes bankrupt, the contract provisions may not be enforceable.

Companies can and have used this in the past to force concessions from unions etc.

If the airline goes belly up, so do the worker's jobs. The pension rights and health benefits of the retired workers may or may not be covered by a binding contract if the company goes bankrupt and starts selling off assets. It depends on the union and the contract they had in place.

As for other ANONYMOUS comments, a union worker goes through an apprenticeship of several years depending on the craft or trade. They are somewhat selective so not everyone can join a union.

Absolutely laughed at the chimp labor comment. Chance are, the chimp labor is making more money than the average user of this site. You'll also likely find chimp labor on this site. Old habits and thoughts die hard. That term and the thought process with it are long past. Anyone can hire a non-English speaking, rat day worker for a job. But if you want something built safe and able to pass any building inspection, use union labor.

As for the union based slander coming my way, you can thank them for the standard 40 hour work week, vacations, and holidays all on negotiated labor contract that the entire economy now uses. Without their labor fights and strikes in the past, you'd probably be working on a Sunday with much lower "chimp" wages. Overtime pay, thank the unions, companies just don't give money away to the workers making the company. Got health benefits through your employer, again, a labor issue from past contracts. Same goes with retirement benefits other than social security.

People bitch and moan about the unions breaking the companies, no; the companies want to make more money with lower paying jobs and inventory costs from anywhere they can find. This has been shown over and over, people just think high wages mean higher costs.